KR100666197B1 - Optical pointing apparatus and personal portable device having the optical pointing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides an optical pointing device and a personal portable terminal that enable pointing using a surface of a finger as a subject, and provide a focal length while minimizing the thickness of the optical system by forming a horizontal optical path. It aims to provide. The optical pointing device according to the present invention includes a cover glass which is in direct contact with a subject; A light source unit irradiating light onto the rear surface of the cover glass; And a light receiving unit for reflecting and condensing the direction of light reflected by the subject through the cover glass in a predetermined direction through a curved reflector, and capturing the collected light. The present invention is capable of pointing using the surface of the finger as a subject, by forming a horizontal optical path to minimize the thickness of the optical system of the optical pointing device and to provide a sufficient focal length, ultra-slim Convenient pointing can be performed without compromising the beautiful appearance of the personal digital assistant.

User interface devices, personal digital assistants

Description

OPTICAL POINTING APPARATUS AND PERSONAL PORTABLE DEVICE HAVING THE OPTICAL POINTING APPARATUS}

1 is a view showing an optical system of a general optical mouse.

2 and 3 illustrate depth of focus of a condenser lens;

4 is a cross-sectional view of the optical pointing device according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a view showing an optical path in the optical pointing device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a cross-sectional view of an optical pointing device according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

7 is a sectional view of an optical pointing device according to a third preferred embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a view showing an optical path in the optical pointing device according to the third preferred embodiment of the present invention.

9 is a sectional view of an optical pointing device according to a fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention.

10 is a view showing an appearance of a mobile phone having an optical pointing device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

11 is a block diagram of a mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a user interface device, and more particularly, to a personal handheld terminal including an optical pointing device and an optical pointing device that can be mounted on an ultra-slim personal portable device such as a mobile phone.

In general, personal mobile terminals such as mobile phones and PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) employ a user interface using a keypad. In more detail, the conventional personal portable terminal is provided with a keypad composed of a plurality of buttons for inputting numbers and characters, so that a user can input a telephone number or a sentence by inputting a button of the keypad.

In recent years, as wireless Internet services such as WIBRO (Wireless Broadband) services have been commercialized, a Windows operating system supporting a Graphical User Interface (GUI) has been adopted for personal portable terminals. Windows for the personal portable terminal includes Windows CE and the like. In addition, with the development of technology, personal portable terminals have various additional services, and a Windows operating system supporting a GUI is also adopted for convenient operation of the various additional services.

As described above, as the operating system of the GUI is adopted as the user interface of the personal portable terminal, the development of a pointing device suitable for the personal portable terminal is urgently required.

In general, a pointing device for a GUI includes a ball mouse, an optical mouse, a laser mouse, a touch pad, a tablet, and the like. The pointing device is employed in a computer, and can theoretically be used as a pointing device for a personal portable terminal.

However, since the personal portable terminal is intended to be portable, it is difficult to employ a separate pointing device separated from the main body as a pointing device of the personal portable terminal. In addition, since a track ball-type or joy stick-type pointing device physically occupies a predetermined space or more, there is a problem of greatly damaging the aesthetics of a small personal portable terminal.

Herein, the pointing principle of the optical mouse among the pointing devices will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a cross-sectional view of an optical system for explaining a pointing principle of a general optical mouse.

The optical system 100 of the optical mouse includes a light source 102, a light source guide 104, a cover glass 106, a condenser lens 108, a blocking film 110, and an image sensor 112. The light source 102 is a high-brightness light emitting diode (LED), and the light emitted from the light source 102 is irradiated to the ground G through the cover glass 106 through the light source guide 104. The light irradiated to the ground G is reflected on the ground G and supplied to the condenser lens 108 through the cover glass 106 again. The condenser lens 108 collects light reflected from the ground G and supplies the light to the image sensor 112, and a blocking film for removing light of a noise component between the image sensor 112 and the lens 108. 110 is formed. The image sensor 112 senses an image corresponding to the light condensed through the condensing lens 108 and analyzes the movement of the subject through the sensed image.

In the conventional optical mouse, the cover glass 106, the condenser lens 108, and the image sensor 112 are aligned in the optical axis direction, and the thickness of the optical system is limited due to the limitation of the depth of focus of the optical system.

Here, the limits of the depth of focus of the optical system of the optical mouse will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. 2 and 3 are schematic diagrams for explaining the relationship between the thickness and the depth of focus of the optical system of the optical mouse.

2 illustrates a schematic diagram of an optical system having a short focal length. When light 200 is irradiated onto the condenser lens 202, the surface of the image sensor 204 is focused. As such, when the focal length is short, the angle of the light 200 input to the surface of the image sensor 204 is very large, and thus the focal spot of the light 200 may be very large even if the focal length is slightly distorted during assembly. . If the size of the focal spot is larger than the pixel size of the image sensor 204, normal image processing may not be possible. Accordingly, the optical system having a short focal length is very difficult to assemble and has a high defect rate.

In contrast, FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of an optical system having a long focal length. When light 300 is irradiated onto the condenser lens 304, the surface of the image sensor 304 is focused. The optical system of FIG. 3 has a small focal spot even if the surface of the image sensor 304 is distorted because the distance from the condenser lens 302 to the surface of the image sensor 304 is sufficiently long. Accordingly, since the size of the focal spot does not become larger than the pixel size of the image sensor 304 even with a certain degree of tolerance, it is easy to assemble and to reduce the defective rate.

As described above, in the conventional optical mouse, the cover glass, the condenser lens, and the image sensor are vertically aligned in the optical axis direction, and the thickness of the optical system is limited due to the limitation of the depth of focus of the optical system. The minimum thickness of is about 4 ~ 5 [mm].

Therefore, even if the shape of the optical mouse is deformed, it cannot be adopted in a personal portable terminal pursuing ultra-slim based on the thickness limitation of the optical system.

Accordingly, there is an urgent need for the development of an ultra-slim pointing device that can be employed in a personal portable terminal pursuing an ultra-slim and beautiful appearance.

The present invention is to overcome the above-mentioned conventional problems, it is possible to point using the surface of the finger as a subject, to form a horizontal optical path to minimize the thickness of the optical system and to provide a sufficient focal length. It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical pointing device and a personal digital assistant.

In addition, another object of the present invention has the advantage that it is possible to simply configure the optical system of the optical pointing device by reflecting the light using the curved reflector and by performing the condensing.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an optical pointing device and a personal portable terminal capable of stably mounting an optical image sensor on a horizontal PCB even when a horizontal optical path is formed.

The optical pointing device according to the present invention for achieving the above object and to solve the problems of the prior art comprises a cover glass in direct contact with the subject; A light source unit irradiating light onto the cover glass; And a light receiving unit for reflecting and condensing the direction of light reflected by the subject through the cover glass in a predetermined direction through a curved reflector, and capturing the collected light; It includes. The reflecting surface of the curved reflector may be formed into a spherical surface, a parabolic surface, or other reflecting surface shape capable of collecting light, and may simultaneously function as a lens and a reflecting mirror.

The present invention provides an optical pointing device that enables pointing using a surface of a finger as a subject, and in particular, minimizes the thickness of the optical system to 2 [mm] or less and sufficiently reduces the focal length to 15 to 30 [mm]. Provided are an optical pointing device that can be provided.

As a result, the present invention enables convenient pointing without harming the beautiful appearance of the ultra-slim personal digital assistant.

The optical pointing device according to the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

4 is a cross-sectional view of an optical pointing device according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a view showing an optical path in the optical pointing device according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

4 and 5 will be described in detail a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

The optical pointing device 400 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is largely composed of a light source unit 402, a cover glass 410, and a light receiving unit 412.

The light source unit 402 of the optical pointing device 400 includes a light source 404 and first and second guide reflectors 406 and 408 as light source guides, and the light source 404 is an SMD (Surface Mounted Device) type LED (Light). Emitting diodes, laser diodes, etc. emit light of high brightness. The first and second guide reflectors 406 and 408 reflect the light emitted from the light source 404 at a predetermined reflection angle and are supplied to the cover glass 410. In particular, the reflection angles of the first and second guide reflectors 406 and 408 are installed so that the light from the light source 404 is incident at a small angle to the back of the cover glass 410, which facilitates scanning the surface of the finger. For sake. In addition, the first and second guide reflectors 406 and 408 may be changed in the installation position of the light source 404 or the number or reflection angle of the light source unit 402 for ease of assembly. Reflecting surfaces of the first and second guide reflecting mirrors 406 and 408 are polished to increase surface precision, thereby eliminating light loss and diffuse reflection that may occur when reflecting light.

The cover glass 410 of the optical pointing device 400 is an optical plastic or glass made of a transparent material, and receives the light from the light source 402 to the rear surface and transmits the light to the upper surface. In addition, when the surface of the finger is closely attached to the upper surface of the cover glass 410, if the light transmitted through the upper surface of the cover glass 410 is reflected by the surface of the finger, the reflected light is supplied to the upper surface Permeate back. The light transmitted to the rear surface is irradiated to the light receiving unit 412 of the light pointing device 400. In addition, the upper surface and the rear surface of the cover glass 410 are polished to increase surface precision, thereby eliminating light loss and diffuse reflection that may occur when the light is reflected.

The light receiving unit 412 of the optical pointing device 400 includes a curved reflector 414 and an optical image sensor 416. The curved reflector 414 has a predetermined curvature and is coated with a metal film such as aluminum, and reflects and transmits the light transmitted through the cover glass 410 at a predetermined reflection angle to the light image sensor 416. Investigate with. Here, the predetermined reflection angle is set to an angle for horizontally converting the light provided from the cover glass 410. In addition, the reflecting surface of the curved reflector 414 may be formed into a spherical surface, a parabolic surface or other reflecting surface shape capable of condensing, and is polished to increase the surface precision, thereby eliminating light loss and diffuse reflection that may occur when reflecting light.

 The optical image sensor 416 is installed vertically to face on a horizontal optical path, to capture the light reflected and collected by the curved reflector 414, and to display the captured image information for motion detection. To provide. The image processing unit detects the direction, speed, and distance of movement of the finger surface through the sensing information and outputs the pointer information.

Since the light path of the light receiving unit 412 is formed horizontally, the thickness of the optical system can be minimized to 2 [mm], and can provide a light path of 15 to 30 [mm] for a sufficient depth of focus. To be.

The optical path of the optical pointing device 400 according to the first embodiment of the present invention described above will be described with reference to FIG. 5.

Light from the light source 404 is irradiated to the first guide reflector 406 (A1), and the first guide reflector 406 reflects the light to the second guide reflector 408 (A2). The light irradiated to the second guide reflector 408 is reflected to be incident on the cover glass 410 at a small angle (A3). The light reflected by the second guide reflector 408 and incident on the cover glass 410 passes through the cover glass 410 and is irradiated onto the surface of the finger H1, and the light is reflected on the surface of the finger H1. Then, it is irradiated to the curved reflector 414 (A4). The light irradiated to the curved reflector 414 is again reflected at a predetermined reflection angle to change the path horizontally, and is focused and irradiated to the optical image sensor 416 (A5).

The first preferred embodiment of the present invention described above switches the light path A5 of the light from the cover glass 410 horizontally, thereby providing a light path of 15 to 30 [mm] for a sufficient depth of focus, while providing the light receiving portion 412. It is possible to make the thickness of the body slim below 2 [mm].

However, since the first preferred embodiment of the present invention collects light using one curved reflector 414, the light collecting efficiency is low.

A second preferred embodiment of the present invention for solving this problem will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

6 is a cross-sectional view of an optical pointing device according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention, wherein the optical pointing device 600 shown in FIG. 6 includes a light source unit 602, a cover glass 610, and a light receiving unit 612. It is composed.

The light source unit 602 of the optical pointing device 600 includes a light source 604 and first and second guide reflectors 606 and 608, and the light source 604 uses a SMD type LED or a laser diode to emit light of high brightness. It emits light. The first and second guide reflectors 606 and 608 reflect the light emitted from the light source 604 at a predetermined reflection angle to supply the cover glass 610. In particular, the reflection angles of the first and second guide reflectors 606 and 608 are determined such that light from the light source 604 is incident at a small angle onto the back of the cover glass 610, which facilitates scanning the surface of the finger. For sake. In addition, the first and second guide reflectors 606 and 608 may change the installation position of the light source 604 or the number or reflection angle of the light source 602 may be changed for ease of assembly. In addition, the first and second guide reflectors 606 and 608 are polished to increase surface precision, thereby eliminating light loss and diffuse reflection that may occur when the light is reflected.

The cover glass 610 of the optical pointing device 600 is a glass of transparent material, and receives the light from the light source unit 602 to the back and transmits the light to the upper surface. In addition, when the surface of the finger (H2) is in close contact with the upper surface of the cover glass 610, when the light transmitted to the upper surface of the cover glass 610 is reflected by the surface of the finger (H2), the reflected The light is supplied to the upper surface and transmitted to the rear surface. The light transmitted to the rear surface is supplied to the light receiving portion 612 of the light pointing device 600. In addition, the upper surface and the rear surface of the cover glass 610 are polished to increase surface accuracy, thereby eliminating light loss and diffuse reflection that may occur when the light is reflected.

The light receiving unit 612 of the light pointing device 600 includes a curved reflector 614, a condenser lens 616, a blocking film 618, and an optical image sensor 620.

The curved reflector 614 has a predetermined curvature and is coated with a metal film such as aluminum, and reflects the light that is reflected on the surface of the finger H2 and transmitted through the cover glass 610 at a predetermined reflection angle to the condensing lens 616. Investigate. Here, the curved reflector 614 has a reflection angle for forming a horizontal light path. The condenser lens 616 is installed vertically to face the horizontal optical path, and collects the light reflected through the curved reflector 614 to irradiate the optical image sensor 620. In addition, the reflective surface of the curved reflector 614 and the entrance and exit surface of the condensing lens 616 are polished to increase the surface precision, thereby eliminating light loss and diffuse reflection that may occur when the light is reflected. The blocking film 618 is disposed between the condenser lens 616 and the optical image sensor 620 to block noise light dispersed by foreign matter such as dust among the light passing through the condenser lens 616. The optical image sensor 620 is installed vertically to face the horizontal optical path, and is imaged by receiving the light collected by the condenser lens 616 and the noise component removed by the blocking film 618. Provides information to an image processor not shown for motion detection. The image processing unit detects the movement speed, direction, and distance of the finger surface through the sensing information and outputs the pointer information.

Referring to the optical path according to the second embodiment of the present invention described above, the light from the light source 604 is irradiated to the first guide reflector 606 (B1), the first guide reflector 606 removes the light 2 is reflected by the guide reflector 608 (B2). The light irradiated to the second guide reflector 608 is reflected to be incident on the cover glass 610 at a small angle (B3). The light reflected by the second guide reflector 608 and incident on the cover glass 610 passes through the cover glass 610 to be irradiated onto the surface of the finger H2, and the light is reflected on the surface of the finger H2. Then, it is irradiated to the curved reflector 614 (B4). The light irradiated by the curved reflector 614 is again reflected at a predetermined reflection angle, the path is changed horizontally, and the light is collected and irradiated to the condenser lens 616 (B5). The light irradiated onto the condenser lens 616 is condensed again and irradiated to the optical image sensor 416 (B6). In addition, the noise component among the light collected by the condenser lens 616 is removed by the blocking film 618.

According to the second embodiment of the present invention, the condensing lens 616 and the blocking film 618 are formed on a horizontal light path, thereby improving light condensing efficiency and providing sufficient depth of focus while minimizing the thickness of the optical system. To be able.

However, according to the first and second embodiments of the present invention described above, since the optical image sensors 416 and 620 are installed vertically to face the horizontal optical paths, the optical image sensors 416 and 620 are mounted on a horizontal printed circuit board (PCB). There was a difficulty in mounting it stably.

A third preferred embodiment of the present invention for solving this problem will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.

7 is a cross-sectional view of an optical pointing device according to a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention, wherein the optical pointing device 700 illustrated in FIG. 7 includes a light source unit 702, a cover glass 710, and a light receiving unit 712. It is composed.

The light source unit 702 of the optical pointing device 700 includes a light source 704 and first and second guide reflectors 706 and 708. The light source 704 emits light of high brightness by using an SMD-type LED or a laser diode. do. The first and second guide reflectors 706 and 708 reflect the light emitted from the light source 704 at a predetermined reflection angle to supply the cover glass 710. In particular, the reflection angles of the first and second guide reflectors 706, 708 are determined such that light from the light source 704 is incident at a small angle to the back of the cover glass 710, which facilitates scanning the surface of the finger. For sake. In addition, the first and second guide reflectors 706 and 708 may be changed in the installation position of the light source 704 or the number or reflection angle of the light source 702 may be changed for ease of assembly. In addition, the reflecting surfaces of the first and second guide reflecting mirrors 706 and 708 are polished to increase surface precision, thereby eliminating light loss and diffuse reflection that may occur when reflecting light.

The cover glass 710 of the optical pointing device 700 is a glass of transparent material, and receives the light from the light source unit 702 to the rear surface and transmits the light to the upper surface. In addition, if the surface of the finger is closely attached to the upper surface of the cover glass 710 and the light transmitted to the upper surface of the cover glass 710 is reflected by the surface of the finger, the reflected light is supplied to the upper surface and transmitted to the rear surface. Let's do it. The light transmitted to the rear surface is irradiated to the light receiving portion 712 of the light pointing device 700. In addition, the upper surface and the rear surface of the cover glass 710 are polished to increase surface accuracy, thereby eliminating light loss and diffuse reflection that may occur when the light is reflected.

The light receiving unit 712 of the light pointing device 700 includes a first curved reflector 714, a second curved reflector 716, and an optical image sensor 718. The first curved reflector 714 reflects the light that is reflected on the surface of the finger and passes through the cover glass 710 at a predetermined reflection angle, and is first focused to irradiate the second curved reflector 716. Here, the first curved reflector 714 has a reflection angle for forming a horizontal light path. The second curved reflector 716 reflects the focused light, which is provided horizontally, vertically, and collects the second curved light to irradiate the optical image sensor 718. Here, the second curved reflector 716 reflects the horizontal light at 90 ° so that the horizontal light can be led to the optical image sensor 718 installed in the vertical PCB vertically. The optical image sensor 718 is installed on a horizontal PCB to be vertically reflected by the second curved reflector 716 and to capture the second condensed light, and the image information is not shown for motion detection. Provided to the processing unit.

The image processor detects the movement speed, direction, distance, and the like of the finger surface through the captured image information and outputs the pointer information.

According to the third exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the optical path for the depth of focus of the light receiver 712 is formed horizontally to provide sufficient depth of focus while minimizing the thickness of the optical system. In addition, since the horizontal light is converted back to the vertical to be provided to the optical image sensor 718 installed on the horizontal PCB, the mounting of the optical image sensor 718 can be facilitated.

The optical path of the optical pointing device 700 according to the third embodiment of the present invention described above will be described with reference to FIG. 8.

Light from the light source 704 is irradiated to the first guide reflector 706 (C1), and the first guide reflector 706 reflects the light to the second guide reflector 708 (C2). The light irradiated to the second guide reflector 708 is reflected to enter the cover glass 710 at a small angle (C3). The light reflected by the second guide reflector 708 and incident on the cover glass 710 passes through the cover glass 710 to be irradiated onto the surface of the finger H3, and the light is reflected on the surface of the finger H3. And is irradiated to the first curved reflector 714 (C4). The light irradiated by the first curved reflector 714 is again reflected at a predetermined reflection angle to change the path horizontally, and is first collected and irradiated to the second curved reflector 716 (C5). The light introduced into the first curved reflector 716 is again reflected at a predetermined reflection angle, the path is changed vertically, and the second light is collected and irradiated to the optical image sensor 718 (C6).

The above-described third preferred embodiment of the present invention makes it possible to provide a sufficient depth of focus while minimizing the thickness of the optical system by horizontally forming the optical path C5 for a sufficient depth of focus. In addition, by converting the horizontal light back to vertical again (C6), it is possible to install the optical image sensor 718 on the horizontal PCB.

Although the noise component of the light provided to the optical image sensor 718 is not considered in the third exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the noise component may be generated by foreign matter present in the optical pointing device 700. There was a problem.

A fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention for solving this problem will be described with reference to FIG.

9 is a cross-sectional view of an optical pointing device according to a fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention, wherein the optical pointing device 900 shown in FIG. 9 includes a light source unit 902, a cover glass 910, and a light receiving unit 912. It is composed.

The light source unit 902 of the optical pointing device 900 includes a light source 904 and first and second guide reflectors 906 and 908, and the light source 904 emits light with an SMD type LED or a laser diode. . The first and second guide reflectors 906 and 908 reflect the light emitted from the light source 904 at a predetermined reflection angle to supply the cover glass 910. In particular, the reflection angles of the first and second guide reflectors 906 and 908 are determined such that light from the light source 904 is incident at a small angle onto the back of the cover glass 910, which facilitates scanning the surface of the finger. For sake. In addition, the first and second guide reflectors 906 and 908 may change the installation position of the light source 904 or the number or reflection angle of the light source 902 may be changed for ease of assembly.

The cover glass 910 of the optical pointing device 900 is a glass of transparent material and receives the light from the light source unit 902 to the rear surface and transmits the light to the upper surface. In addition, if the surface of the finger is in close contact with the upper surface of the cover glass 910 and the light transmitted to the upper surface of the cover glass 910 is reflected by the surface of the finger, the reflected light is supplied to the upper surface and transmitted to the rear surface. Let's do it. The light transmitted to the rear surface is irradiated to the light receiving portion 912 of the light pointing device 900.

The light receiving unit 912 of the optical pointing device 900 includes a first curved reflector 914, a second curved reflector 916, a blocking film 918, and an optical image sensor 920. The first curved reflector 914 reflects the light that is reflected on the surface of the finger and passes through the cover glass 910 at a predetermined reflection angle, and is first focused to irradiate the second curved reflector 916. Here, the first curved reflector 914 has a reflection angle for forming a horizontal light path. The second curved reflector 916 reflects the focused light, which is provided horizontally, vertically, and collects the second curved light to irradiate the optical image sensor 920. Here, the second curved reflector 916 reflects the horizontal light at 90 ° so that the horizontal light can be led to the optical image sensor 920 installed on the vertical PCB. A blocking film 918 is provided between the second curved reflector 916 and the optical image sensor 920 to remove noise components of the light output from the second curved reflector 916. The optical image sensor 920 is installed on a horizontal PCB to be vertically reflected by the second curved reflector 916 and to capture the second condensed light, and the captured information is not shown for motion detection. Provided to the processing unit. The image processor detects the movement speed, direction, distance, and the like of the finger surface through the captured image information and outputs the pointer information.

According to the fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention, the optical path for the depth of focus is formed horizontally to provide sufficient depth of focus while minimizing the thickness of the optical system. In addition, the horizontal light is converted back to vertical to be provided to the optical image sensor 920 installed on the horizontal PCB, thereby making it easy to mount the optical image sensor 920. In addition, it is possible to improve the accuracy of optical image sensing by removing noise components due to foreign substances present in the optical system.

The optical path of the optical pointing device 900 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention described above will be described. Light from the light source 904 is irradiated to the first guide reflector 906 (D1), and the first guide reflector 906 reflects the light to the second guide reflector 908 (D2). The light irradiated to the second guide reflector 908 is reflected to be incident on the cover glass 910 at a small angle (D3). The light reflected by the second guide reflector 908 and incident on the cover glass 910 passes through the cover glass 910 and is irradiated onto the surface of the finger H4, and the light is reflected on the surface of the finger H4. And is irradiated to the first curved reflector 914 (D4). The light irradiated to the first curved reflector 914 is again reflected at a predetermined reflection angle to change the path horizontally, and is first collected and irradiated to the second curved reflector 916 (D5). The light introduced into the first curved reflector 916 is again reflected at a predetermined reflection angle, the path is changed vertically, and the second light is collected and irradiated to the optical image sensor 920 (D6). The noise component of the light D6 moving from the first curved reflector 916 to the optical image sensor 920 is removed by the blocking film 918.

In the above-described preferred first to fourth embodiments of the present invention, only an example of employing a curved reflector has been described, but an aspherical lens coated with a metal film such as aluminum may be employed.

The above-described optical pointing device according to the first to fourth embodiments of the present invention can be mounted on a personal portable terminal.

An example in which the optical pointing device according to the present invention is mounted on a cellular phone among the personal portable terminals will be described with reference to FIG. 10.

A predetermined portion of the mobile phone 1000 of FIG. 10 is provided with an optical pointing device according to the first to fourth preferred embodiments of the present invention, and in particular, a predetermined portion of the keypad 1002 of the mobile phone 1000 includes the first to The cover glass 1004 according to the fourth embodiment is provided to allow a user to move by pointing the surface of a finger as a subject.

The configuration of the above cellular phone will be described with reference to FIG.

The controller 1100 of the mobile phone not only controls the mobile phone as a whole, but also receives point information such as a moving speed, a direction, and a distance of a finger surface, which is an object provided by the image processor 1112 according to the present invention. Accordingly, the display device driver 1104 is controlled to change the pointer displayed on the display device 1106. In addition, the controller 1100 performs an operation according to the operation of the click button provided in the keypad 1108. The memory unit 1102 stores various information including a processing program of the controller 1100.

The display device driver 1104 displays the screen under the control of the controller 1100 on the display device 1106, and changes the position of the pointer displayed on the screen according to the present invention. The keypad 1108 includes a plurality of keys, provides a signal according to a key input to the controller 1100, and further includes a click button used for pointing according to the present invention. The optical pointing device 1110 photographs a finger, which is a subject, and provides the image to the image processor 1112. The image processor 1112 generates point information such as a moving speed, a direction, and a distance of a finger, which is a subject, using the sensing information and provides the generated point information to the controller 1100. Accordingly, the mobile phone performs pointing according to the speed, direction, and distance of the movement of the finger as the subject.

The above-described present invention enables pointing using a surface of a finger as a subject, minimizing the thickness of the optical system by providing a horizontal optical path, and providing a sufficient focal length, thereby providing an ultra-slim personal portable terminal. Convenient pointing can be performed without compromising the beautiful appearance.                     

In addition, the present invention has the advantage that it is possible to simply configure the optical system of the optical pointing device by reflecting the light using the curved reflector and by performing the condensing.

In addition, the present invention has the advantage that it is possible to reliably mount the optical image sensor on the horizontal PCB even when forming a horizontal optical path.

As described above, the present invention has been described by way of limited embodiments and drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, which can be variously modified and modified by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Modifications are possible.

Accordingly, the spirit of the present invention should be understood only by the claims set forth below, and all equivalent or equivalent modifications thereof will belong to the scope of the present invention.

Claims (11)

An optical pointing device that can be mounted on a slim personal portable terminal, A cover glass in direct contact with the subject; A light source unit irradiating light onto the cover glass; And A light receiving unit including a curved reflector for reflecting light reflected by a subject through the cover glass in a predetermined direction and condensing the light, and for capturing light collected by the curved reflector; Optical pointing device comprising a. The method of claim 1, The light source unit may include a light source for emitting light and a light source guide for guiding light emitted from the light source to the cover glass. The method of claim 1, Reflecting surface of the curved reflector is an optical pointing device, characterized in that formed in the shape of a spherical or parabolic surface. The method of claim 1, The light receiving unit, A curved reflector for reflecting and reflecting light reflected through the cover glass in a predetermined direction; And An optical image sensor installed to face the predetermined direction to capture the focused light; Optical pointing device, characterized in that consisting of. The method of claim 4, wherein And the light receiver further comprises a condenser lens disposed between the curved reflector and the optical image sensor to condense the light reflected by the curved reflector. The method of claim 4, wherein And the light receiving unit further includes a blocking film disposed between the curved reflector and the optical image sensor to remove a noise component of light reflected by the curved reflector. The method of claim 1, The light receiving unit, A first curved reflector reflecting light reflected through the cover glass in a first predetermined direction and condensing the first light; A second curved reflector reflecting the light irradiated in the first predetermined direction in a second predetermined direction and collecting a second light; And An optical image sensor disposed to face the second predetermined direction to capture the focused light; Optical pointing device comprising a. The method of claim 7, wherein The light receiving unit, A blocking film disposed between the second curved reflector and the optical image sensor to remove noise components of light reflected by the second curved reflector; Optical pointing device further comprises. The method of claim 1, And the optical path in the predetermined direction is longer than a length to provide a sufficient depth of focus. In a personal portable terminal having an optical pointing device, A cover glass in direct contact with the subject; A light source unit irradiating light onto the rear surface of the cover glass; And A light receiving unit for reflecting and condensing a direction of light reflected by a subject through the cover glass in a predetermined direction through a curved reflector, and capturing the collected light; An optical pointing device composed of; A display device for displaying a screen and a pointer for displaying various information; A display device driver for driving the display device; An image processor which detects pointer information of a moving speed, a direction, and a distance of a subject based on information captured by the optical pointing device; And A controller configured to control the display device driver to change the position of the pointer according to the pointer information; Personal portable terminal having an optical pointing device characterized in that it comprises a. The method of claim 10, Further comprising a keypad having a click button, And the control unit performs an operation according to the operation of the click button.

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